john brennan, the president's chief counterterrorism adviser in the west wing. it's actually a post brennan has wanted for years and now is going to get it. as for defense, this is the third time the president has had to fill an opening at the pentagon. for the second time, his choice is a republican. this time it's former senator chuck hagel, which is already touching off a big political fight. before chuck hagel can take over at the pentagon, he must be confirmed by the senate and he's already facing an uphill battle. even though democrats control the senate, nbc news has learn ed as many as 10 democratic senators could vote against hagel. public publicly, leading democrats have not expressed much support. >> i would have to study his record. >> as a republican, he may find support from his old republican colleagues to come by. >> there will be a lot of tough questions of senator hagel, but he will be treated fairly. >> reporter: he became known as a thorn in the side of republicans turning against the iraq war in 2007. >> most divisive since vietnam. >> i hav